The present invention relates to data processing systems, and more particularly, to a method for repairing a touch panel, a repairing component, and a touch panel.
A conventional data processing system usually has a touch panel whereby a user enters data into the system. The touch panel has two typical purposes: it functions as a pointing device, such as a mouse, in personal computers (such as tablet computers); when used in a Point of Sales System (POS), it is conducive to paperless input and thus facilitates the sale of goods at shops or warehouse stores.
According to structure and design, touch panels are divided into various categories, namely resistance-type touch panels, capacitance-type touch panels, sound wave touch panels, and optical touch panels. Taking a resistance-type panel module as an example, it comprises two conductive layers spaced apart by a short distance and a plurality of spacers therebetween. As soon as a user presses the resistance-type touch panel, the two conductive layers get connected at a specific point, and thus a resistance/voltage change occurs at the point. An analog signal with a voltage change is converted into a digital signal by an analog-to-digital converter (AD converter) to determine the Cartesian coordinates of a press point and thereby calculate the position of the press point with an IC controller.
The two conductive layers are disposed on a first substrate and a second substrate, respectively, and made of indium tin oxide (ITO). It is not uncommon that users use the resistance-type panel module frequently, for example, by touching, pressing, or writing to it, to thereby cause the conductive layers to crack or peel off or cause the substrate to lose its resilience, and in consequence the electrical conductivity of the conductive layers decreases greatly; as a result, the IC controller either fails to determine the position of the press point or determines the position of the press point inaccurately, thereby losing touch capability which might otherwise be functioning. As regards the application of a Point Of Sales System (POS), a specific point on the resistance-type touch panel module is likely to be pressed frequently, and, as a result, the resistance-type touch panel module is very likely to malfunction or get damaged when pressed frequently.
As regards problem-solving solutions available to a Point Of Sales System (POS), when informed by a warehouse store of malfunction or damage, a supplier dispatches a maintenance technician to the warehouse store to replace the malfunctioning or damaged touch panel module with a good touch panel module. However, the solution requires significant manpower and resources, is inefficient, and incurs high costs.